


What Might Have Been

by EmberCartwright



Series: Tyzula Things [9]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/F, Light Description of Torture, Protectiveness, Redemption AU, breaking free of ozai, tyzula - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-11-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:07:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27624493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmberCartwright/pseuds/EmberCartwright
Summary: An alternate ending to Book 3 of Avatar where Azula realizes what's really important in her life. The ending turns around really quickly but shock and war can do crazy things to someone's mind.
Relationships: Azula & Ozai (Avatar), Azula/Ty Lee (Avatar)
Series: Tyzula Things [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2019697
Comments: 4
Kudos: 116





	What Might Have Been

Azula knelt in front of her father, trying as hard as possible to mask the fear that kept trying to creep onto her face. 

“Rise daughter,” Ozai said from behind his curtain of fire. “Do you know why I called you here?”

“No father,” Azula said, rising and staring at his shadow, the only part of him that she could see. 

“Would you say that you are a soft person?”

“Absolutely not,” Azula replied quickly. 

“Conquers can not be soft, Azula. To win a war you need to be ruthless. You need to be heartless. You need to be a monster.”

“I am a monster,” Azula said, ignoring the stab to her chest that those words brought. 

“A monster should be willing to do away with people even if they are close to them, as close as family or a lover.”

“I am a monster,” Azula repeated, more confidently. 

“You seem to believe that but when the time came to prove it, you failed.”

Azula looked at her father confused. 

“Do you know what the punishment is for striking royalty,” Ozai asked. 

“Being lashed to death,” Azula recited, feeling sinking dread in her stomach. 

“So you’re aware of the law,” Ozai drawled. “That makes what I’m about to say a little more disheartening. I was very disappointed to hear what transpired between you and your friends at the Boiling Rock last week. I was even more disappointed to hear how you dealt with the aftermath.” 

“I threw them in prison for their treason.”

“No,” Ozai said loudly. “You tucked them away in a place you knew they would be hidden and comparatively safe. You protected them. That is weak.”

“I am not weak, father. I dealt with them as I thought was right at the time.” 

“But you just told me that you knew the proper punishment for attacking royalty. And this,” Ozai paused to open his curtail of fire to show that he was holding Ty Lee by the braid. She was gagged. She looked tired and beat up. Her clothing was torn and her face was puffy. 

Azula’s eyes widened and she felt a burning in her throat and threatened tears but she was adept at pushing that down and so she did. 

“This thing hit you,” Ozai finished. He yanked her braid, hard, causing her to cry out quietly against her gag. “And you let it live.” 

Azula’s eyes met Ty Lee’s and she could see pleading inside them. Azula looked away. 

The two sides of Azula were at war. What she believed to be her most fundamental nature was the calculating, heartless monster that acted in the way her father wanted. This is how she’d been raised and how everyone expected her to behave. 

Everyone except for Ty Lee. 

The last few months had shown her a different side of herself. A side that had fallen in love against her will. A side that urged her to get on that platform and take the acrobat in her arms and never let go again. 

“I know that deep down inside of you is the monster I raised you to be. Now it is time to prove it.” 

Ozai ripped the gag out of Ty Lee’s mouth. 

“‘Zula, ‘Zula please. I know you. I know this isn’t you. You’re not a monster. I love you-”

Ozai smacked her hard across the face causing her to fall silent. 

“Love is an illusion that makes us weak. No one loves you, especially not this thing. Power is real and the way to get it is to fight the weaknesses inside yourself. Now kill it. Kill the thing that falsely claims to love you. Kill the thing that wants to make you weak. Kill the liar,” Ozai held Ty Lee up by her hair. 

No one loves her. Azula believed that. She had believed it until she reunited with Ty Lee. Ty Lee had taught her what real love was in just a few short months. Just a fraction of the time she had desperately spent trying to win her father's love. Just for him to say that no one loved her, not even him.

Azula brought her hands together and cleared her mind. With very practiced circular motions she generated lightning and allowed for the sharpness to take over. 

Four fingers touched in front of her as she looked back and forth between her father and her best friend, the girl she loved. 

Her father was cackling and Ty Lee was crying and squirming and Azula heard nothing except the crackle of her own lightning. 

With a deep breath she took aim in her mind and in a fraction of a second she let the lightning go. 

The target was hit squarely in the chest, without any time to defend. They fell to the ground, instantly dead, with a look of shock on their face. 

Azula took off toward the platform and gathered the body of Ty Lee in her arms. 

The acrobat’s eyes looked at her blankly and Azula let loose the sob that she’d been holding in for five years. All of her anger and emotions poured out. 

“I’m sorry Ty. I’m so, so, sorry,” she cried as she cradled Ty Lee’s body in her arms. "I wanted to protect you, but I couldn't."

“I forgive you,” she whispered back. 

Azula smiled as Ty Lee lifted herself up and threw herself at Azula, grasping her in a tight hug. After a long time they pulled apart and Azula leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on Ty Lee’s lips. 

She tasted like blood and salt but she also tasted like Ty Lee. The acrobat kissed her back. 

It wasn’t until after they parted that Azula realized the gravity of her choice.

“I killed my father,” she whispered. 

Ty Lee sat up a little inside of Azula’s arms so they could both look at the dead body of former Fire Lord Ozai. 

“For me,” Ty Lee whispered. 

“He said to kill the liar. He was the liar. Love is real. I know, because I love you,” Azula said slowly. 

“I love you too,” Ty Lee said, tears running down her face again. “I was so scared at the Boiling Rock. I thought you were going to kill Mai. I thought you might kill me” 

“I thought I might too. But I couldn’t do it.” 

“I’m glad,” Ty Lee laughed, kissing Azula again.

“Am I the Firelord now?” Azula whispered. Ty Lee blinked. 

“Do you want to be?”

“I’m not sure. Would you be my Firelady?”

Ty Lee chewed on her lip. 

“I’m kinda tired of this war,” she said slowly. 

“So we’ll end it.”

“Like raze the Earth Kingdom?”

“What?”

“You just proved you’re not a monster. You can crown yourself Firelord now, which is your ultimate goal. Why do you need to take over everything and kill all those people? Why not rule the country that you have and use that excess energy to marry the most beautiful woman you know.” 

Azula laughed and nodded as a tear rolled down her cheek. Then she got sullen again. 

“We did so many war crimes. I doubt the world is going to let us just rule the country we have.”

“You are fifteen and were acting under duress from a dictator. You can make some concessions. Use that famous silver tongue of yours,” Ty Lee smirked. 

“When did you get so smart,” Azula sighed. 

“Just imagine,” Ty Lee said. “When she was fourteen Azula pulled off the bloodless coup of Ba Sing Se, a feat no one had ever accomplished. At fifteen she was crowned Firelord and ended a 100 year long war, pulling the world into an era of peace and prosperity.” 

Azula smiled and kissed Ty Lee one last time before getting up, and lifting the acrobat in her arms. 

“Come on, we have some letters to write and a coronation to plan.” 

“And a child wedding!” 

Azula laughed as Ty Lee threw her arms around her neck and started chattering about dresses and venues.


End file.
